affiliation

noun

af·​fil·​i·​a·​tion ə-ˌfi-lē-ˈā-shən 

plural affiliations

: the state or relation of being closely associated or affiliated with a particular person, group, party, company, etc.

The radio station has maintained a longtime affiliation with the concert hall and often has featured performers as guests on the air.

A former Democrat, Joseph McCarthy had switched his affiliation and was elected in the Republican landslide of 1946 …

—Ted Widmer

… hundreds of businessmen owe their success to an affiliation with organized crime.

—William Bastone

Synonyms of affiliation

• association
• partnership
• relationship
• collaboration
• cooperation
• connection

Examples of affiliation in a Sentence

the Little League team, despite its name, the Northern Dynamites, has no affiliation with the Northern Dynamite Company

Recent Examples on the Web

Many believe that a Notre Dame team without a conference affiliation will get an unfair nod from the selection committee. —Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025

The school didn't want to have any political or ideological affiliations. —Peter D'abrosca, FOXNews.com, 6 Dec. 2025

Public records do not list Cole’s party affiliation. —Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 5 Dec. 2025

Knight said the partisan divide among those polled mirrored the party-affiliation split in the electorate. —Calmatters, Oc Register, 5 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1791, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for affiliation

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration